friday

Oldest son informed me a couple of days ago that him and his significant other have decided to get married on this May 21st. The date has changed several times but it's always been at least a year down the road.
Three weeks  is not much time to  plan things!
They want an intimate ceremony
at a small nature preserve where their favorite hiking trail
is located. After they are married we will have a celebration/grill out at her parents house. So really three weeks should be enough time.
Daughter and I took daughter-in-law to be shopping yesterday for a wedding dress. It took us 9 hours
to find the one, but finally we did! It's a knee length, ivory, lace over liner type thing with bell sleeves.........reminds me of a 60's style dress..........I love it! It's perfect for a very casual outdoors in the woods wedding!
My sister is ordained and will be marrying them. So that part was easy!

tuesday

Today we have to go to the store to buy some screws to re hang the back porch light fixture, go to the post office, and there's something else we need to do but I forget what it is......boyfriend will know!
The siding to replace the piece that blew off in the storm finally came in and has been hung. You can't tell there was ever a problem!

I went shopping yesterday and bought some new gym shoes, sandals, two pair of shorts, new undies, a top, and a bathing suit cover.
I haven't shopped in forever.
It was fun! All of the stuff I bought was purchased with gift cards I received for my birthday.
So there was no guilt. That made it even more fun!

Daughter and I had planned on going to Florida in June. A nice mother daughter trip!
But she was pulling out of her work parking lot and wrecked into an oncoming car. No one was hurt but she was cited for failing to yield, received a 130 dollar ticket, plus she has to pay the deductible to have her car fixed so going to Florida and paying all those things puts too big a strain on her budget.
She's hugely disappointed. Cried even...........
So now the plan is to go camping.
I'm trying to convince her what a great time it will be. Because it will be! And I told her to start planning/saving now for a trip to Florida next year.

friday

I'm having a grill out here tomorrow for oldest son for his birthday.
We will get together with family  after oldest son, his girlfriend
and I hike the land that's for sale.
I bought him a new hand gun for his birthday. Middle son picked it out. I can't even tell you what kind it is. Him and his grandpa like to go shooting. Now they have a new gun to shoot!

When I was pregnant with oldest son I planned in my head over and over again what I would do when I went into labor. I planned calling my mom, getting my pre packed overnight bag, showering if there was time.........I even planned the route I would take to the hospital.
 I forgot to tell husband my plans.
 So on the way to the hospital I was surprised when he took a route different than what I had planned in my head.
I was calm up to that point!
But as it goes some of the time, everything turned out okay! I had a 6 lb 2 oz baby boy. He really was the most beautiful baby I'd ever seen........and not because he was mine.........but because he just was really pretty! lol.................he was a good little baby..........easy to care for...............I'm grateful for him!

I planted some tomato seeds and green bell pepper seeds the other day.
It's all I'm planting this year.
The peppers grow really good, tomatoes not so much! Maybe
this year will be different!

I went to work yesterday to have HR fill out some papers for me.
I think I've been there 3 times since November.  It was good to see
everybody. I miss them and yet I enjoy not being there for 12 hour, adrenaline filled, can't find the supplies I need, crazy chaotic not enough staff, shifts.
 It's going to bite when I have to go back to the old routine. I think I have 16
more months off. :O)

thursday

The rooster woke me up this morning.
I like having him in the neighborhood.
I smile when I hear him calling out.

We went to look at some land the other day.
The acreage is separated by the road. I couldn't tell by looking how much of the land
was on either side of the street.
The barn needs to go. Unless son can work magic. I hope he can because I love barns!
The house would be okay for a camp, as would the out building.
The ponds are nice.
The back of the property would have a wonderful view I think if we cleared out some
weeds and other over growth.
Oldest son is going to hike the place with me this Saturday and let me know what he thinks. Plus I want to get a better look. Boyfriend wasn't able to hike it with me when we were there!

They're not going to do a Pet scan on boyfriend until July. They would have done a CT scan but can't because of kidney function.
They have to wait until July for the Pet scan so says his insurance......and will probably have to fight for that says his doctor.
So we will wait, like it or not!

tuesday

We have an appointment with the oncologist today and they will probably do either a pet scan or a CT scan this week.
Boyfriend has been super emotional the past couple of weeks and anxious about the scan results.
All I can do is be supportive.
I believe it will be okay, that the cancer is gone.
That's what I tell him......and I hug him tight.

After our appointment we are going to the county to look at a farm.
It has a little mess of a house, a barn and out building, and a couple of ponds. It's 25 acres and it's close to my sisters 100 acres.
I hope it's beautiful and that I've finally found the one!

monday

We got up early this morning and went to our old dive in the wall and had breakfast. Boyfriend had gravy and biscuits, I had oatmeal and fruit. It was pretty good!

I paid the property taxes on my car today and renewed my license plates. There was only one other person in DMV while I was there. He was already doing his business. I was surprised when he turned, smiled at me and said "hey mom!" It was middle son. He's so cute.

After paying property taxes I went to the bank to deposit a check for $12.50 I got for my one day of jury duty (orientation day before asking to be excused.) and then we ran to the grocery.

Boyfriend took his car to be cleaned and vacuumed at some full service place, and then he insisted on taking mine.

Boyfriend and my grown children took me out for dinner yesterday to celebrate my birthday. It was good spending time with them. They gave me some nice gift cards, dishes and an owl to add my collection! One of my sisters stopped over to see me last evening, two of them text me, and the other is stopping over this evening. Dad called to wish me a happy birthday and mailed me a card with some cash. The card he sent was pretty and cute. He signs "mom and dad."
I miss mom most on my birthday.
Dad was invited to go with us but he had already committed to something.

I woke this morning to a rooster cock a doodle doo'ing. He's still going at it! I suppose he's new to the neighborhood. I like hearing him!

saturday

We hung around the house yesterday.
I read " The Promise of Rest" by Reynolds Price. I'm about half way through the book. I like it even though it's sad. It's about a young man who returns to his childhood home to die of AIDS.

I also cooked ribs, corn on the cob, and applesauce for dinner. It was okay. The ribs had a little too much fat on them though. The corn was great!

I'm not sure what we will do today.
There's gotta be trouble to get into somewhere!

thursday

Boyfriend and I went fishing again today.
The weather here was amazing. It was a perfect weather day to enjoy the outdoors!
We caught 5 bluegill and a catfish....................and we both caught a sunburn!
But still it was a nice day.

wed

I went fishing with boyfriend today.
It was sunny. The skies were blue, and it was warm outside. It was a beautiful day!
I caught 7 blue gill, and 2 catfish. One of the catfish was 4 pounds. It was pretty big!
We're going fishing again tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it!

monday

well it's been raining here for days....................the new sump pump is working well..................mr. bojangles seems a little down, and a little lethargic. i think it's the weather. weeping isn't bothered by it............come rain, snow, or sunshine...she heads outside everyday and takes her walk down the street zigzagging from one front yard to the next until she is 3 houses down and then she heads back up to our yard. she usually files her nails on the tree in the front yard and then relaxes in a flower bed or on the porch. it's her routine half a dozen times a day no matter the weather.

we're going fishing tomorrow if it doesn't rain.
we're going to my grandma's old fishing spot. it's the best spot on the lake.
last time i fished there was with my x husband. we weren't married yet though.........and i got a ticket because i didn't have a fishing license. the ticket was for 85 bucks.  haven't fished since then without a license!

friday

So I seasoned my pork shoulder with salt, pepper, garlic, liquid smoke, and bay leaves. I cooked it in the oven in a little water with some onion for several hours. It didn't get quite tender enough so I have it slow cooking in the Crock Pot today.After it's soft enough to shred I'll add some diced onions, green and red peppers then pour some barbecue sauce over it and we will have sloppy Joe's. I bought some cabbage and carrots to make Cole slaw. Yum! I think it will be delicious!

Son went to a job site today owned by an elderly, African American, female. Her and son connected and became  friends.He's been going on and on about how much he liked her.
Apparently this elderly woman asked lots of questions about me, decided she likes me, and gave son a ham to give to me.Son said she had a freezer in the garage full of hams that she cooks for her brothers. lol..............I think it's sweet!

thursday

It's raining, cold, and windy here today.
It's probably a good day to do some cleaning and laundry.
Or maybe hang out in our pajamas and watch some movies.
I just don't know.
Boyfriend is still in bed.
He used to be up and going by 4:30 or 5 AM.
It's 9:30 AM and he is still sleeping.

The kitties have been in and out twice since I've been up. Mr. Bojangles is ready
to nest in my lap and then take a nap. He's so cute.

I have a pork shoulder thawing. I've never cooked one before but plan to today for supper.

A piece of my siding blew off. It was hanging by a thread and blowing in the wind so I tied it to my side light fixture. I was worried that if the wind pulled it off it would also pull the other pieces of siding it may or may not have been attached to. So I anchored it. The wind took the siding and my light fixture. :O) I tried!
The people who who hung the siding came out yesterday to have a look. They're going to hang a new piece either today or tomorrow. I guess my house was lucky. The people next door lost an awning and pieces of their roof, and the people up the street lost their front gutter.

The woman who lives next door sells drugs I think.
She collects a disability check and medications for sore ankles and anxiety. She's probably 39 or 40 years old. So tax payers are paying for her to be a drug dealer and tax payers are also paying for the drugs she gets from her doctors to sell.
I've had a few people over the past several months knock on my door thinking they were at her house. The day before yesterday some whacked out high woman walked into my house without knocking thinking she was at my neighbors. She came back that night, didn't see me sitting on my porch until she was halfway up my front steps and then realized out loud she was at the wrong house again.
Probably half a dozen cars a day pull up to her house, a person gets out of the car......usually they go to her front door  and then leave in under 2 minutes........I worry  that someone will mix our houses up when they come to rob her of her drugs and drug money.

wed

Boyfriend had a doctors appointment today.
The doctor thinks he looks really good as does some of the other staff.
Boyfriend came home feeling a little high on life.
It makes me smile, and makes my heart happy!

tuesday

So the painters painted my LR, DR,kitchen, BR, and hallway.
They did a fantastic job.
I also had the deck cleaned, stained, and the nails punched down.
It looks as good as a 22/23 year old deck can look!

We've spent the last couple days cleaning the bedroom closet, bedroom wood trim, windows and drawers. Finally we finished! It looks good!

The construction continues on our street. Today a guy was on a machine that has a giant fork like thing that he uses to pick the huge metal plates off the street. So while he was attempting to lift one of the sheets  his fork got stuck and popped up throwing 5 or 6 plate size pieces of concrete 2 inches thick onto my roof and deck.
I don't know if there is damage to the roof. It's going to be checked tomorrow!
My deck has a small crack and discoloring......no big deal!

I went to the casino with boyfriend the other day. On our way out we stopped to play a monopoly game per my request. Boyfriend was tired and I don't think he really wanted to play it but went along with me anyway cause he's nice that way..........we hit for 500 bucks. lol........then played it one more time and won another 150 bucks. It was fun!

We stopped at our favorite hamburger stand today. It just opened for the spring and summer. As we pulled in the lot I spotted my dad sitting at one of the picnic tables having lunch. Boyfriend and I sat and had lunch with him. It was nice seeing and having lunch with him!

friday

I went to a nurses meeting today and I also did my CPR re-certification.
It was a nice day.
While at work for the meeting HR went ahead and did my finger prints. I think they take prints once a year.

It was pretty outside..........so I was outside as much as I could be today.
I was just on the porch. Mr. Bojangles rubbed against my leg and I noticed he has a tar like substance on the right side of his body. I tried wiping the substance off but he ran..............eventually I'll figure out what's on his fur, and get it cleaned off of him. I hope no one intentionally put tar on him.